An echocardiography is a medical test that uses ultrasound to create images of the heart. It is used in the diagnosis and management of patients that suffer from heart disease and is one of the most widely used tests in cardiology.
The technique produces a wide range of information including the shape and size of the heart (particularly the size of its internal chambers), its capacity for pumping blood and the location and extent of any damage to the heart’s tissues. It is also used by physicians to provide estimates of the heart’s function such as its cardiac output and its diastolic function (how well the heart muscle relaxes).
It is an important method for assessing heart abnormalities in patients that have been diagnosed with heart disease and is especially useful in providing an early diagnosis of myocardial infarction which is a heart wall abnormality that can lead to heart attacks.